Merrill about average for renters insurance rates

When national website ValuePenguin compared the cost of renters insurance rates across Wisconsin, they found that Merrill is about average.

With an annual average rate of $177, Merrill ranks 42nd of the 71 communities included in the study – right about in the middle of the pack and 0.7% over the state average. The annual average renters insurance rate among those cities ranged from $160 to $201.

The cheapest places for renters insurance in Wisconsin are all located in the vicinity of Lake Winnebago, near the southeast corner of the state. Residents in the five cheapest places in the state (Appleton, Fond du Lac, Green Bay, Manitowoc and Beaver Dam) have rates nearly 9% lower than the study average for Wisconsin.

Unlike the five cheapest places for renters insurance listed above, the cities with the most expensive renters insure are scattered throughout Wisconsin. Looking at the most expensive places, rates as much as 12.4% higher than the state average for the sample property might seem high. However, renters insurance in Wisconsin is relatively inexpensive compared to other states. The difference between the same property rates for River Falls, which has the highest rate in Wisconsin, compared to the average was only $25. Rounding out the top five most expensive cities are Rhinelander, Superior, Rice Lake and West Allis.

“America’s Dairyland” got the name because of the many dairy producers in the state, especially cheese producers. Wisconsin is the 20th most populous state in the U.S. and while Milwaukee and Madison are the only two cities with more than 200,000 residents, there are many smaller cities throughout the state. To see how the cost of insuring a rented apartment varied in Wisconsin, a study by national website ValuePenguin gathered data for one sample property (a rental property with roughly 1,000 square feet of living space and $100,000 in liability coverage). For that reason, the rates have comparative value, and won’t be what tenants can expect to pay for their renters insurance. Across the 71 cities and towns, ValuePenguin found that renters insurance premiums in Wisconsin could vary by 25% between the most expensive and the cheapest.